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Wine Reviews

HomeWine Reviews (Page 62)

By 2Red Wine, Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  My love affair with Ayda Winery began last fall in my local bottle shop. I’m in this shop a lot. Like, a lot a lot. So when there’s a new bottle somewhere I zero in on it pretty quickly. With the Ayda Winery VinAida collection it wasn’t difficult at all since they were sitting right there on check out counter. Actually I think they might all have been samples for the store owner. There was only the one set and the shop doesn’t carry them*. They let me buy a couple bottles anyway. I think they get a kick out of the odd foreigner who gets so excited about

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  The wine world recognizes some eighteen “noble” grapes. The most common among them being: Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah. What makes them noble? In a nutshell, availability does. These 18 varieties have wide-spread appeal and can be found in most major wine-producing areas in the world. Not for nothing, but I like the way VinePair puts it: “… these grapes are the gateway drugs.” The Noble Grapes of Turkey   None of Turkey’s native grapes is included in the list of noble (or international) grapes. Not surprising as by and large the grapes are cultivated only here in Turkey. However if Turkey had its own list of noble

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  While I have many favorite wineries in Turkey, Prodom holds a special place in my heart. The first year I lived in Turkey I lived in a conservative neighborhood a fairly far distance from the heart of the city. Alcohol was not easy to come by. And good wine was even more rare than that. So for a year I was convinced that all Turkish wine was crap. Then I moved to the city center where there is not only wine on grocery store shelves but also proper wine shops and wine bars. It was at one of these bars where a friend of mine took me that I had

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Karnas Vinyards is a boutique, family run winery and farm which main goal is to farm “respectful of nature”. Engineering the First Turkish Zinfandel [caption id="attachment_11659" align="alignleft" width="301"] Me at Karnas[/caption] Selva Ismen, the elegant force behind Karnas Vineyards started life as a civil engineer. One of the very first graduates from the prestigious Istanbul Technical University, Selva Hanım lived a life of clinical maths and calculations. Until, that is, she lived in the US for a number of years where she learned to love not only wine, but specifically Zinfandel. After she retired she began experimenting with winemaking at the family home in Yeniköy in Turkish Thrace. Selva Hanım bought grapes from friend

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Urlice Vineyards is one of Turkey’s special boutique wineries. The husband/wife team Reha and Bilge Benisü Öğünlü oversee everything from vineyards to cellar on their own. The Making of a Dream Bilge and Reha lived in the US for over 15 years. While there they developed a love for wine and gastronomy.  Her parents had a small vineyard where they learned the ropes a bit during visits. Between those visits and their wine tours in the US their love of wine grew prompting them to start their own vineyard when they returned to Turkey. Since beginning planting in 2002, Bilge and Reha have built a beautiful winery and make wines every bit as

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Diren Winery, located in the northern part of Anatolia in the Black Sea region is one of Turkey’s older wineries. Sourcing grapes predominately from its vineyards in Tokat, Diren has been making wine for 60 years. Diren was founded in 1958 by Mustafa Vasfi Diren who took his love for wine and transformed it into a family legacy. Largely self-educated in winemaking, he visited vineyards in Europe to learn their techniques and collaborated with the Agriculture Department of Ankara University. He continued to learn and perfect the crafts of viticulture and vinification until 1985, when his son Ali Diren took over the reins at the winery. Diren now takes great pride in

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Previously I have reviewed the Vino Dessera 190 2014 vintage. So it seems I’m moving backwards now with the 190 2013! Making Walnuts into Wine Vino Dessera was established in 2012, but to understand the full story of these fields we need to jump a little further back. When the owner’s first grandchild was born, abiding by a very thoughtful Anatolian tradition, he planted approximately 600 walnut trees along the green slopes of Thrace. And, as it turns out, he never stopped. Motivated partially by self-competition, when his second grandchild was born, he planted wine grapes in 2000. And, so too Vino Dessera was born. Today, the vineyard is a family-run operation growing both

By 0Rest of the World, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Last summer was the summer of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc for me. We get a surprising number of them here in Istanbul. Sadly they all have ridiculous mark ups but some things are worth the exaggerated sticker price. Such as the Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. David Hohnen established Cloudy Bay in 1985. At the time he was one of the first five wine makers to venture into Marlborough. Of course Marlborough has risen since then to become New Zealand’s leading wine region and is now synonymous with Sauvignon Blanc. Cloudy Bay’s vineyards represent the essence of the region and embody it in wine. Grapes from the Wairau Valley bring the punch and

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Porta Caeli came about as the result of a wine-loving Turkish family’s quest to prove that Turkish wine can compete with established Old World wine. The winery and spa hotel are located in the village of Ecebat where Thrace meets the Aegean. While the majority of Turkey experiences a hot and continental climate, this region is very different. The harmony of a maritime climate, surrounding forests, and breezes has attracted many winemakers including Porta Caeli, Suvla, Ergenekon, Doluca, Chateau Kalpak, and more. With the notable exception of Suvla, most winemakers in the region, Porta Caeli included, work exclusively with international grape varieties. In the case of Porta Caeli, specifically Bordeaux varieties. They believe that their terroir

By 0European Wines, Rest of the World, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  I’ve been to Greece a couple times now but it wasn’t until my second visit (last May) that I discovered Greek wine. The very first one was the Thalassitis Assyrtiko from Gaia (pronounced ghye) Wines. Now, a year later and another visit to Greece in, I got to visit one of Gaia’s wineries. While the Thalassitis is from Gaia’s Santorini winery, not the one in Nemea I visited, I got to taste their Assyrtikos all the same.  Leon Karatsalos and Yiannis Paraskevopoulos founded Gaia on Santorini in 1994. Located in Monolithos on the east coast of the island, the winery is a repurposed tomato processing plant, a remnant of